ArcaMax

Dear Annie: My aunt has the strangest quality. I see her at every holiday and family party, and she always brings something delicious made from scratch. For my cousin's birthday, it was a key lime pie that disappeared within minutes. It was unreal.

On several occasions, I've asked her for the recipe. I like to cook, and she clearly has good ...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband and I have been married for 12 years, and we agree on most things. We like the same kind of vacations, have similar values and rarely argue about family. Money, however, is our recurring sore spot.

I am a saver. I grew up in a household where unexpected expenses could throw everything into chaos, so having money set ...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm starting to wonder if headphones have gone out of style. Last week, I was sitting in a doctor's waiting room when a woman across from me put her phone on speaker and had a very loud, very personal conversation for nearly 20 minutes. Everyone in the room could hear about her sister, her husband and what sounded like an argument ...Read more

Dear Annie: I have worked for the same company for six years and, until recently, truly enjoyed my job. I have always had strong reviews, good relationships with my co-workers and a reputation for being dependable.

Eight months ago, we got a new boss, and the entire mood of the office changed.

She rarely raises her voice or says anything ...Read more

Dear Annie: Two members of my extended family have ADHD. One is receiving counseling and medication year-round and is doing very well. My grandson, however, is being treated quite differently.

He takes medication for ADHD, but as far as I know, he is not receiving counseling or much help understanding what ADHD actually means. What worries me...Read more

Dear Annie: I've been a teacher for 19 years. I've quit my job and have what I think are panic attacks when I think about going back.

Throughout my career as a mandated reporter, I've had to call the authorities multiple times, and I've always been a shoulder for children who've been abused to cry on. I never let it interfere with my attitude...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband retired last year after 40 years as an engineer, and we finally started planning the life we'd been talking about for decades: travel, hobbies, quality time together.

But three months after he retired, he accepted a series of offers for "small consulting projects." He accepted without checking with me, and since then, ...Read more

Dear Annie: My fiance and I are getting married next spring, and my parents generously offered to help pay for the cost of the wedding. We were thrilled. Weddings are expensive, and money is tight.

But I quickly realized that this might actually be a mistake. Their contributions come with strings attached, and my mother seems to think this is...Read more

Dear Annie: I have been divorced for three years and share custody of my two children, ages 10 and 13. My ex-husband remarried about a year ago, and his wife is kind, involved and genuinely seems to care about my children. I know that is something to be grateful for.

The problem is that lately I feel as though she is trying to become their ...Read more

Dear Annie: I have a close friend I have known for more than 20 years. We have been through marriages, children, job changes and plenty of ups and downs together. I love her and consider her almost like family.

Lately, though, I have started to notice that our friendship feels very one-sided. I am usually the one who calls, makes plans and ...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband and I absolutely adore our grandchildren, and spending time with them is one of the great joys of our lives. The problem is that our son and daughter-in-law have very different parenting styles, and we keep finding ourselves caught in the middle.

Our son is much more relaxed about things like bedtime, sweets and screen ...Read more

Dear Annie: I have a best friend whom I love dearly, and we have been close for years. She is funny, generous and has been there for me during some difficult times. But lately I have noticed a pattern that is starting to wear on me.

Whenever I try to tell her something about my life, she interrupts before I can finish and somehow turns the ...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband has recently become obsessed with Twitter. He spends hours a day on his computer away from his family. I've supported this unusual hobby until recently.

I noticed he and another female Tweeter calling each other "besties," and they have cute nicknames for each other. I confronted my husband about it, and he told me that...Read more

Dear Annie: My entire extended family is in a group chat together. Sometimes it's fun, and sometimes it's useful, but most of the time it's just noisy. The worst offender is my cousin "Daniel." At least once a week, he sends political rants, tweets and reels to the chat. It's wearing on everyone, especially my mom's side of the family, which ...Read more

Dear Annie: I have two sisters, and one of them, "Joanie," tragically passed away from cancer last year. It's obviously been hard, but what's making it harder is my remaining sister. She has always been competitive. And she has somehow turned even grief into a competition.

For example, a few weeks ago I mentioned I hadn't slept the night ...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband is a kind, funny and intelligent man, but at dinner parties he has one habit that is starting to drive me crazy: He talks way too much.

He loves telling stories, and once he starts, there is almost no stopping him. A simple story about running into an old friend can turn into a 20-minute play-by-play with every name, ...Read more

Dear Annie: This past July, my husband and I rented a house near us so our two daughters, their husbands and our grandchildren could all spend time together. Since everyone lives several states apart, we thought it would be a wonderful chance to reconnect and hopefully start a yearly family tradition.

We live only about 15 minutes from the ...Read more

Dear Annie: My twin sister and I have been compared to each other for as long as I can remember. As children, people compared our grades, our looks, our friends and even our personalities. We always laughed it off, but now that we are older, I'm beginning to realize how much those comparisons still affect me.

My life has turned out very well....Read more

Dear Readers: Today is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. People are encouraged to forgive, reflect and start fresh. And while it is a Jewish holiday, its message is one that just about anyone can appreciate.

The idea is simple: Take a look at the year behind you and ask yourself a few questions. Was I kind enough? Did I make time for the ...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm an 18-year-old woman who just started my freshman year of college out of state. Everything is going well, and I'm meeting new people with different perspectives.

One thing I'm experiencing is my "I don't know" phase, which is new for me. Especially with relationships, I don't know if I like certain boys because they're ...Read more